The Hilltop Restaurant in L'Anse, one of our Pasty Cam sponsors, lays claim to bakery that's bigger than life, from the cookies you can wrap a child around, to their breads and muffins. This tiny sweet roll eater was caught on film by Mark Pontti. We'll have to check with Mark to see if the little tyke was able to finish the whole thing off! Sure is making my stomach growl.

Editor's note: Pasty Cam apologizes for any diets this photo has sabotaged. :->
By Toivo from Toivola on Tuesday, January 27, 2004 - 06:41 am:

Don't know if Junior ever finished the roll, but we know what he did after dinner!

Hi all!! Sure wish I had a cuppla doze to go wit my coffee!! Snowed in here in Mt. Pleasant. Been snowing since yesterday afternoon, with a short break overnight. Must have about 6-7 inches already and it's still coming down. Just enjoying the warm cottage and watching our neighborhood deer herd eating sugar beets outside my front window!!! It doesn't get better than this, unless I was up home (Mohawk)!!!
By Barb, MI on Tuesday, January 27, 2004 - 02:50 pm:

Dear Troll in Ferndale: I enjoyed your "...you might live in the U.P." I'm originally a Norwegian girl from southern Wisconsin and we also know Lutefisk. It was our traditional Christmas Eve dinner when I was growing up. I didn't know the Yoopers knew about it! Do you know anyone who sells it up there? Can't wait to be a Yooper in 2005!
By Roudy Mi on Tuesday, January 27, 2004 - 04:01 pm:

I'm of Finnish descent, and my mom used to make lippiakalla (sorry if my spelling is off; Finnish for lutefisk) every year on Christmas Eve. The smell was so bad I would barricade myself in my room until it was done! In later years though, it didn't smell nearly so bad, and I actually enjoy some myself now if my dad prepares it. I think what we buy in the store nowadays is much more processed than it used to be, and the smell is much less pungent.
By AČ Royal Oak, MI on Tuesday, January 27, 2004 - 05:08 pm:

AČ, that white onion sauce sounds like the same recipe my family used. Tastes good to me! See if you can track down the old family recipe and give it a try!
By Lowell Mo on Tuesday, January 27, 2004 - 05:39 pm:

To those wondering about the carbs in that roll. Just eat it. About 6 months or a year from now they'll tell you that they are good for you. Thats what they do with everything else they say is bad for you. Its 12 down here with the real feel at -2 pretty good wind so it really feels cold out. One of them rolls and a cup of good coffee would go good about right now.
By Jennie Largin Daniell on Tuesday, January 27, 2004 - 06:19 pm:

I was sure my imagination was remembering those sweet rolls bigger than they must be...but your picture proved I remember them correctly. How we loved to stop and get a roll if we were passing through L'anse when leaving home in Hancock. I've been in Texas for about 25 years now and they keep telling me everything's bigger in Texas...Would love to put one of those sweet rolls on their plates!
By Paul, Webberville, Mi troll on Tuesday, January 27, 2004 - 06:20 pm:

Hey,Stan stuck in the Mitten! I agree, take the plastic wrap off and let the youngster have at it.
By JJ MI on Tuesday, January 27, 2004 - 06:54 pm:

My dad came over in 1924 - he was 8 years old... Came over from Hanover Germany. It was a family tradition to make the "New Year Salad" which is a northern german dish, as I recall, beets, potatoes, picked herring to name but a few ingredients... Kinda had to aquire a tast for it - if you know what I mean. My family back home still makes it... Traditional holiday dishes - sounds like a yooper cook book waiting to happen, maybe my neighbor in Ferndale can promote it...
By Fran,Ga on Tuesday, January 27, 2004 - 07:06 pm:

My Favorite way to eat a Hill top Roll, We will buy a bunch to take home, When home we would freeze them. Then take one out later in the week, slice it like a piece of bread, and butter both sides and put in fry pan to heat, the best with cup of coffee. Yum
By Chef Chaz on Tuesday, January 27, 2004 - 09:25 pm:

Ah, lutfisk (spelled the Swedish way)! The butt of many jokes (most deserved) and much entertainment. But ya know, it can taste really good too. In the old days, it did smell terrible. My Swedish grandfather who emigrated from Sweden to the U.P. in the 1880s and worked in the copper mining industry for several years, probably had it every Christmas because I had it with him at the end of his life in the 1940s. Now, they process it so well that there is very little unpleasant smell when cooking it. Two things are important: 1) Bake it, don't boil it; and don't bake it too long or it will turn into jelly. Done right, it is firm and flaky. And 2) the sauce is critical. Norwegians usually use melted butter. That's it. Just melt it. Don't do anything else to it. Swedes generally use cream sauce. Not bland. Not too thin. Use some spices such as allspice, garlic, onion, pepper, salt, etc. Slightly brown the butter and flour so that there isn't too much of a flour taste. (I wonder how it would taste with Toivo and Eino's Really Secret Pasty Sauce?) Eat it with boiled potatoes, Swedish (or Norwegian) meatballs or potato sausage, rutabagas, beets, lingonberries (like cranberries), rye bread, lefse with butter and brown sugar, with rice pudding and lingonberry sauce for dessert. (Or eat a pasty). If you eat it this way and enjoy it, you can still tell jokes about it. BTW, I have had lutfisk 17 times this season since Oct. 8th and will have the last lutfisk dinner on March 20th. Some season, huh?
By Catherine--Holland MI on Tuesday, January 27, 2004 - 11:23 pm:

Jim in the Cities--

Why the last time on March 20? Because of spring? If yes, then you were a little early with Oct.8...
By Julie in Lower MI -- Yooper-To-Be on Wednesday, January 28, 2004 - 12:10 am:

Both my grandparents were born in Norway and we all ate our lutefisk with boilded potatoes and lots of melted butter. The secret is definitely in the cooking. It was delicious. We won't even get into the discussion about blood sausage or blood bologna as it was called in our community!
By Jill, CA on Wednesday, January 28, 2004 - 12:35 am:

My first lutfisk dinner was at the Vang Lutheran church in Dennison, MN on Oct. 8th (80 dergees - Oof Da) while the first Lutfisk dinner that I know of was the Norwegian Glee Club on Oct. 4th, 2003. (If you are interested, email me. I have a list of over 70 venues for Lutfisk dinners in the Twin Cities area and beyond (as far as Conrad, MT)). The last Lutfisk dinner is on March 20th, 2004 and guess who is putting it on: the Norwegian Glee Club. I guess you might call them "book ends". I keep some frozen lutfisk in my freezer for emergencies (in case I can't get any good hot dogs for the Fourth of July) but I haven't had to use it yet. I'll bet that there are no responses to this post because lutfisk lovers don't stay up this late. They're trying to sleep off the lutfisk they ate at yesterday's Lutheran Church Supper.
By AČ on Wednesday, January 28, 2004 - 03:25 am:

After reading various reader comments about lutefisk/lutfisk, I found several websites dedicated to the subject, two of which I found quite interesting.

Not only are the cinnamon rolls good but so is there gigantic loafs of bread, great for toast. All of these are available online for us southerner's who don't make it upnorth as much as we should. Check the links on top of the pastycom homepage.
By former yooper on Wednesday, January 28, 2004 - 07:15 pm: